Atticus Finch; Closing Argument

        The Alabama vs Thomas Robinson case dealt with the accused rape of a white woman by a black man. In this very case, There was a very hostile jury of only white men, and a white hostile audience. This time period of the story was very severe for black men as they were socially weak compared to the white men and they're truth was seen as lies. although this being the scenario, Atticus Finch used effective strategies when presenting his closing argument of this case. I am publishing this blog for my 10th grade PAP english II class, to understand the story and Finch's speech in depth.

        Symbolism/Allusion; Finch's use of allusions and symbols was very strong, because he brought people from earlier history to create an effect on how people, colored people, should be treated. "...Thomas Jefferson once said that all men are created equal, a phrase that the Yankee's and the distaff side of the Executive branch in Washington are fond of hurling at us." (Lee 223) He is saying that it was addressed long ago that all men are created equal and should be treated equal, but in their present time the people of Maycomb are still using racism to view Thomas Robinson as a lower individual than the white's, and with their behavior, the officials of the White House would be disgusted. Another example of allusion would be ".. - there is one human institution that makes a pauper the equal of a Rockefeller, the stupid man equal of an Einstein, and the ignorant man the equal of any college president."(Lee 233) Finch is contrasting individuals to Rockefeller and Einstein; saying that anyone can be poor, unintelligent, or uneducated, no matter what their skin color or background is. following onto the symbolism, the title of the book "To Kill A Mockingbird" the Mockingbird itself is symbolism. To kill a mockingbird means to destroy innocence, there is a large amount of characters (Boo Radley, Jem, mainly Tom Robinson) who can be identified as mockingbirds- innocents who have been destroyed to the contact of evil. 

      Diction & Tone; Finch's tone throughout his closing argument seems to be very direct and measured, and Atticus then shifts his tone to logos to create solid facts for his argument. Finch uses a variety of appeals and tones to get his point across; Tom Robinson is innocent. The rest of the speech is mostly driven by pathos, His tone shifts because he opened up to the audience, with the ambition to open up the audience's eyes and come to the true realization of Tom Robinson's innocence, and to not judge him based on his skin color. Atticus tells the jury "The state has not produced one iota of medical evidence to the effect that the crime Tom Robinson is charged with ever took place."(Lee 231), using logos to prove his statement. Atticus argues "And so, a quiet, humble, respectable negro, who has unmitigated temerity to 'feel sorry' for a white woman has had to put his word against two white people's." (Lee 232) here, Finch is using pathos to paint a picture of a wrongfully and unfairly accused Tom Robinson. In conclusion, Finch uses elevated diction and creates the tone very well, showing the court that Tom Robinson is a human being, just like them.

    Syntax; Finch's use of syntax and use of rhetorical devices is very powerful in his speech. "What did her father do? We don't know but there is circumstantial evidence..." (Lee 232) this is an example of Aporia, he is asking a question for nobody to answer, but to think about. Finch asks a relevant question to the whole audience for them to deeply think about it, for them to think about what Mayella's father did in this situation and the evidence behind it, and how quick they are to judge. An example of anaphora would be "... confident that you gentlemen would go along with them on the assumption- the evil assumption- that all Negroes lie, that all Negroes are immoral, that all Negro men are not to be trusted around our women..."(Lee 232)  He is using the repetition of "all Negroes" to persuade the audience that their "evil assumption" about all Negroes is not true and he stated it to show how ridiculous it might sound. Lastly, an example of asyndeton would be "We know all men are not created equal in the sense some people would have us believe--- some people are smarter than others, some people have more opportunity because they're born with it, some men make more money than others, some ladies make better cakes than others--- some people are born gifted beyond the normal scope of most men." (Lee 233) Finch's use of excluding conjunctions was to enhance the meaning of what he is saying- that in favor to qualities we are not equal, but should be treated equal according to our actions and who we are as a person, not our skin color.

  Application; In my own closing arguments, I would want to use symbolism and allusion to create an effect of integrity and a deeper meaning to my points by referring to another work which has a similar theme. Tone is also an important thing as I would try to create a direct and serious tone to get my point across and use ethos, pathos and logos to create diction that is effective with my tone. Overall, I would use rhetorical devices, allusion, symbolism and the 3 appeals to use in my own closing arguments.